A Child's Path Home
by Chiyomomo
Summary: Edward had nearly given up all hope to regain his use of alchemy when he's given a second chance. The price? Becoming a teacher in the midst of a great and terrible war.
1. Einleitung

Disclaimer: All characters belong to their respective owners. The plot, however, belongs to me.

**A/N: **This story will eventually become yaoi, although the pairing is not fully decidedand any suggestions for it is welcome and would be greatly appreciated. This is also my first story, period. Since it is, I would love if you, the readers, would give any suggestions for where you would like the story to go, although I already have the main points already planned out.

Also, I currently do not have a beta reader and would love if anyone would offer to go over the new chapters even if it's just for small suggestions. :)

* * *

**Homecoming: ****Prologue**

**By: Chiyomomo**

The window curtains ruffled and swayed under the invisible breeze that pushed through the still air in the small, but cluttered, bedroom. It pressed and prodded until it reached a young man fast asleep on an uncomfortable bed. It ruffled his long unbound locks against his forehead and licked at his cheeks as if it were a forgotten lover. The only other occupant of the room, a smaller boy with features nearly identical to the first, stirred gently at the cold draft but remained asleep, lost in a fantasy of a soon to be forgotten world.

"_Edward_…" The voice was feminine and soft as it flitted in his ears and danced into his consciousness.

Edward, as the voice so lovingly called out, stirred at the noise before he slowly opened his golden eyes to the dark room. He gradually lifted his tired form into a sitting position before he squinted with his unaccustomed eyes into the darkness of the disorderly room. Parting his lips in confusion, he slowly swung his legs, one very much unlike the other, onto the edge of the bed and lifted himself to a standing position. Sluggishly, he made his way to the open window, his body swaying with exhaustion and fatigue.

"_Edward_…" This time it was undeniable, he heard it and he was certain it wasn't a lingering apparition of a hallucination or dream. He gripped the rotting wood of the windowsill with firm and steady hands and gazed outside into the open air, his eyes narrowed in confusion and distrust.

Softly, as not wanting to awaken his sleeping brother, he spoke out into the darkness. "Is anyone there? Show yourself."

Although not unexpected, he was still dissatisfied when no one answered his halfhearted calls. Feeling like a child and a fool, he turned back to fall back to slumber.

Unexpectedly, a soft chuckle caused Edward to twist back around to stare back at the window.

Sitting daintily on the windowsill, a small woman who Edward assumed could only be a few years older than himself. She wore a simple white dress that pooled at her ankles to reveal a pair of unadorned slippers. Her oval faced was famed was framed by long strands of the darkest shade of black that reached to her knees. But besides her long hair, he could find nothing extremely remarkable about her person but then again, he wasn't sure of what he was expecting to find.

"It's not very smart to leave your window open; someone might think it an invitation and get the urge to come in." The intruder brought a dainty hand to cover her mouth as another chuckle escaped her rosy lips.

Edward stiffened at her words before he narrowed his eyes in wary distrust. Clearly, she couldn't be that much of a threat. Her body was too slim, too fragile to put Edward in any type of danger. Still, he had seen many women who were too strong for their body, his sensei in particular, and were he still in a world were alchemy was possible, he might have felt the need to be more cautious.

"You know, it's really stupid to jump in someone's window and wake them up and make them cranky. Especially if that person is me. "He nearly growled out and took a threatening step forward. Regardless of the lack of threat she posed, there was something extremely unnerving about the visitor and wasn't too fond of being unsettled.

She raised her hands in mock surrender before a radiant smile encompassed her face as she jumped down from the ledge and landed on the tips of her toes, as graceful as a prima ballerina at the height of her career. Slowly, like a child approaching a scared animal, she sauntered forward until she was directly in front of the suspicious young man. Raising an eyebrow as if in question, she lowered her left hand and grabbed his soft one into her own. Edward gave no acknowledgment to her gesture besides a slight twitch of his lip.

Edward watched in morbid fascination as her head was thrown back as if she was in pain, her eyes glazing over until her iris were entirely white, and felt his hand tremble in hers. Unsure of what to do, he waited a few moments until she let out a sad whimper and dropped his hand.

"Your past, it hurts so much. And yet, you have nothing to show for it. If given the chance, would you wish to continue using the devils magic?"

As she spoke, she seemed to age in front of his eyes. Her body, once healthy and supple, seemed to decay and wither. The long black hair twisted into itself, reappearing seconds later a gross and dull gray. Soon, she was no longer the vibrant woman she was just moments before, but a wilted and shriveled hag.

Edward gave out a surprised gasp and stepped back unintentionally, as if his instincts overrode his body and began to move on its own accord.

"What are you?"

She laughed, or at least that's what Edward thought she did. Instead of the dulcet and saccharine, if not mocking, laughter of before it came out as a raspy groan that spilled out of her dry lips.

"Does it truly matter? Right now, you should be more worried about the question at hand. Do you wish to gain your alchemy back? There are ways, it is not lost forever."

Edward immediately forgot about the scene that lay out before him and he felt his heart push its way up to into his throat. He could feel his entire body move in beat to the drum, as if it were pounding to remind him he was not dead, and this was not a dream. Inside, his mind was crying out, begging, pleading with Edward conscience to answer in the affirmative. His only love, besides his little brother who still slept soundly only a few feet away from the pair, had been so far out of his reach and maybe now, no matter how small the chance, he would be able to go back and grasp it once more.

Only his bowed head and shaking shoulders showed the turmoil the decision was causing him. Abruptly, he ceased trembling and stared into the old hags face, determination and a will of fire so easily seen burning and twisting inside his golden eyes.

"I'd do almost anything to get it back. I'm almost nothing without it."

"Remember those words. You will become a very important player in the events that follow."

Before he could hear the last of her words, Edward's body began to felt heavy and he swayed on his feet, unable to control his body. Before he could stop himself he found himself plummeting onto the hard wooden floor, his eyes rolling in the back of his head. The last image he saw before sleep over took his consciousness was the old hag smiling serenely at his broken form.


	2. Kapitel Eins: Treffen

**A/N: **I forgot to mention it in my first author note, so please forgive me. The story takes place two years after the Elric brothers are reunited (making Edward 20 and Alphonse 15) on the other side of the gate, after the Conqueror of Shembala. However, it is also set during Harry's sixth year. (Disregarding HBP) However confusing it might be, the conflicting timelines will not affect the story in any foreseeable way. Hehe, that's what I love so much about Fanfiction.

* * *

Edward awoke the next day with his face pressed against the decrepit hardwood floors. His two arms were awkwardly splayed about his body as if to cushion an ill-fated fall. His body felt stiff and unyielding as he tried to pull himself up from the dirty hardwood floors that his body now rested on. He groaned in exhaustion and let his tired fall back into the position he had awoken to.

With his face pressed so close to the floor he could feel the dust rise up and tickle his nose whenever his breath danced at the surface. Grimacing, he realized just how battered and uncared for the blemished wood actually was. Scars and fissures marred the wood covering, dirt escaping in and rotting it from the inside. Edward was sure that diminutive insects had found their way in-between the cracks and had made it their home. Sighing in annoyance, he noted that he would have to gut the floors and start it anew.

"Nii-san? Why are you on the floor? Did you trip?" Edward looked up at his younger brother in mild frustration. However, the frustration had no place to be aimed at his brother; it was instead aimed at himself. Did he trip? Edward couldn't be sure. In all honesty, he couldn't remember how he had gotten on the floor in the first place.

His anger dissipated, he stole a long look at his younger brother. His was the spitting image of Edward now that his body was back, though their eyes and golden hair were a different shade. They had both inherited it from their father. While Alphonse had inherited his mild and gentle temperament from their mother, Edward has obtained a furious temper. Unfortunately, he had not inherited it from any unseen relative but from years of frustration and anguish thrust upon him at such a young age.

"Yeah, sure. So…are you going to help me up or am I going to be stuck here for the rest of my life?" Alphonse blushed in embarrassment and reached down to latch onto Edward's cold hand. Edward huffed with fatigue as he, with assistance from Alphonse, righted himself up and sat down on his bed.

"I'm surprised you're up so early, nii-san. You haven't gotten out of bed this early since-" Alphonse caught himself before he said what they had been avoiding for months. They had an unspoken agreement, something that would save them both a lot of sorrow.

To be truthful, Alphonse had come to accept his loss of alchemy. He was just happy to be reunited with his brother and losing his ability to transmute did not seem like that big of a price when he put it in perspective. However, seeing his older brother's face whenever it was mentioned killed him to the point were he would avoid mentioning at all costs. It just wasn't worth seeing the pain and torment it caused Edward.

"I know. But, there's no use moping about it any longer. I know I've been a horrible brother lately Alphonse and I want to change that. Please forgive me." Edward looked away, shame covering his face like a veil sheltering him from the outside world. His eyes were pinched shut; he refused to allow any tears to slip past and add more shame to what he was already feeling.

Alphonse cringed. "Nii-san, please. You have always been a great older brother. I would never have gotten my body back if it wasn't for you! Please, Nii-san, pull yourself together. For my sake, please." He pleaded with his brother. He himself was almost in tears by his declaration. His brother had gone through so much more than him and yet it had left Edward so broken and unsure.

Edward laugh was short and bitter. "Maybe. But, don't forget Al, I was the one who was responsible for the loss of your body in the first place. If I was stronger, I would never have suggested using the Devils Mag-"

Edward's eyes widened in surprise. He remembered someone saying that too him. It seemed like the memory was miles away and every time he tried to grasp it, it would fly off even further.

Edward clamped his hands over his ears in frustration and gritted his teeth as his brother watched in confusion. Alphonse took a step forward to comfort his brother, his arm outstretched in sympathy, when a sharp tap came from the closed window.

Both brothers looked at the window in surprise, the previous conversation forgotten, when they saw a beautiful tawny owl tapping impatiently at the hard glass.

"Nii-san? What do you thinks wrong with that owl?" Edward shrugged and, getting a flash of déjà vu, got up from his spot on the bed to cautiously make his way to the windowsill.

He unlatched the window with a dull click, his brother close behind him watching in curiosity. The bird flew past Edward and landed on the cluttered desktop on the other end of the room. She gave a hoot in annoyance and thrust her leg out impatiently.

"There's something tied to its leg, Nii-san."

"I know, I see it." Nevertheless, Edward stayed where he was and watched the bird, his face crunched up in befuddlement.

The owl watched him with an ill-mannered gaze, as if looking down on the young man for being unaware of her given objective. She trundled a bit before she gave out another hoot of impatience and thrust out her leg again, this time in the direction of the younger Elric brother.

"Why does everything strange have to happen all at once?" Edward muttered underneath his breath before he sighed and made his way to the desk. Edward kneeled in front of the desk until he was eye level with the bird and peered at the letter that was tied gently to the owl's delicate foot. The second he reached for the letter and yanked it from her limb, the owl nipped at his artificial finger and flew out the window.

"Well, that wasn't very polite."

"Stupid bird, I've never liked birds. Lucky it didn't bite my other hand or I would have lost a finger, right Al?" Alphonse laughed with his older brother and walked over to stand by him so he could examine the letter in Edward's hand.

"What does it say?" Edward shrugged before he turned the envelope in his hand.

Written on the front, in perfect German, were the words:

To: Misters Edward and Alphonse Elric

Topmost bedroom

176 Steifes Street

Munich, Germany

Precariously, Edward ripped the top of the envelope and pulled out two pieces of parchment, one of them completely blank. Edward handed the blank piece to Alphonse to examine and read the first one aloud.

Dear Misters Elric,

It has come to my attention of the need of a new professor, as well as an assistant, to teach Alchemy at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. If you are interested, I would love to arrange a meeting to discuss the specifics. Please write your response on the second piece of parchment enclosed.

Yours sincerely,

Albus Dumbledore

Headmaster

_(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock, _

_Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)_

"Wow, his title is almost as long as the actual letter. " Alphonse turned to his brother, his excitement hardly hidden. "Are you going to reply?"

"Don't be stupid, Al. This has to be a joke. Magic?" Edward snorted and threw the letter on the desk in aggravation.

"If it's a joke, Nii-san, how do they know about Alchemy? Nobody should know about it here." Alphonse had picked up the parchment and clutched it to his chest in desperation. Whoever this Dumbledore was might know how to use Alchemy in this dimension. Moreover, maybe, he could help his brother regain some of his humanity.

"I don't know, Alphonse. But I'm not going to get my hopes up. I got you back Al, what more do I need?" He turned his back and made his way to his dresser where he sifted through the drawers absentmindedly.

Alphonse scowled and grabbed a pen from one of the drawers of the desk and wrote three word simple words on the blank parchment. He watched in a mixture of surprise and triumph as the words dissolved into the paper and disappeared.

"Nii-san! Come look!" Edward cocked his head at his brother, his artificial arm halfway through the sleeve of a plain button up shirt. His eyes widened in shock as he saw words appear on the parchment as if written by an invisible hand.

Haphazardly pulling the sleeve the rest of the way up his shoulder, he hurried to his brother's side. He watched in amazement as a reply of gratitude and a time and address to meet the following day was scribbled onto the paper in the same handwriting as the letter.

"See! This has got to be real!" Alphonse smiled and wove the paper in the air as if it were a trophy of some magnificent defeat.

Edward scoffed but in his head, he was doing the same as his brother. A second chance at alchemy, ever since he got his brother back, it was the only thing that occupied his mind. Science in this world could only divert him for so long. He tried to act strong in front of his brother, pretend that he was fine, but he was positive his brother was smart enough to see through his façade.

* * *

Edward shifted uncomfortably on the stone bench, his fingers nervously twitching every few seconds towards his pocket watch. Beside him, Alphonse was bouncing excitably. Clutched in-between his fingers, wrinkled and creased, were the letter and envelope. It was as if it were evidence in its self that alchemy would be in their grasp soon enough.

After a few more moments creaked by, Edward gave into temptation and checked the silver watch in pocket. Only a few more minutes before this Dumbledore was due, and he refused to wait a second after the scheduled meeting time. If there was one thing he had learned in the military, it was the importance of punctuality. Though, he couldn't remember one time he was actually on time for anything.

"Nii-san!" Edward looked up in surprise to see a tall man standing a few feet from the park bench, his robes rustling in the calm summer air. He looked so out of place and remarkable in the city streets of Munich.

While everything seemed to be painted in odd shades of brown and ash, this man was like a beacon of light. His robes were a gentle shade of purple that matched the bizarre looking hat that sat on his white hair. Most remarkable however, was the long white beard that draped well below his chest to his waist.

"Nii-san, why can't anyone see him?" Alphonse asked in confusion.

Indeed, the streets were hardly deserted, the reason why Edward was so skeptical about the meeting place, and yet no one was sparing a way-word glance at the odd man. Maybe he and his brother were so close they were having joint hallucinations. Well Edward had heard weirder things.

The old man, who strangely reminded Edward of Fuhrer Bradley, walked up to the pair sitting on the bench when neither made a move to join him.

"Hello. You two must be the famous Elric Brothers." He outstretched his old hand in front in greeting, his eyes twinkling in amusement at the brothers' twin expressions of uncertainty.

Edward's eyes narrowed before he shook the offered hand, "You know way too much, old man. Are you from beyond the gate? Or maybe the Thule Society?"

Edward refused to release the hand, waiting for the response that would either save or condemn the man's life. His grip faltered, however, when he was meant with a slight chuckle.

"No, no, dear boy. I am exactly the person I claimed to be in that letter you received yesterday morning. My name is Albus Dumbledore. And I wish to give you a teaching position at my school, if you choose to accept my offer." He replied, his lips twitching as if he were in on some sort of secret.

Edward relaxed his grip and allowed the man's hand to slip out from his. Albus smiled sincerely before he shook Alphonse's hand and made to sit beside the pair on an adjacent bench.

"As you may know, though I have no idea how you know so much, Alchemy is not possible here. Thus, I cannot teach it." Edward and Alphonse waited with bated breath for the contradiction that would free them from the shackles that now held.

"Ah. The great science of Alchemy. It is true that Alchemy is not commonly practiced in this world, though it does still exist."

"But how?" Alphonse looked at Albus then at his brother in embarrassment for interrupting before he folding his hands into his lap, trying to contain his excitement. His heart was beating so fast in his chest, he could hardly control himself.

Albus laughed in amusement before he continued, "You do know that only certain people had the aptitude to use Alchemy in your world, do you not? It is the same here, except the people that have the ability choose to keep it a secret from those without it. But, Alchemy is just a branch of something bigger, something that your dimension only skimmed the surface of. It's called magic."

Edward sat in silence, his mind deep in thought. So many questions and conclusions swirled and rushed through his brain, he could hardly believe he was still capable of breathing at the same time.

"But, if we can still use Alchemy here, why can't we _use_ it?" Alphonse asked.

"In this world, you need something to channel the raw energy into your transmutations; the energy gathered is just too broad. Though, I have learned of one such Alchemist who was able to cast this aside after some years of practice."

"Just what exactly is this _converter_?" Edward stared at the old man, his voice solid and assured.

The brothers watched as Dumbledore withdrew an elongated stick, or at least that's what it looked like to them, from his pocket and waved it in front of them with a flourish.

"A wand. "

Edward looked at the wand in scrutiny, his hope overshadowing his doubt. He turned to Alphonse in questioning. He nodded in silent understanding and approval. Besides losing each other, it was worth anything to get Alchemy back.

"We accept. Though we have more questions we would like answered in due time. Just out of curiosity though, who was it that was able to do it without a wand?"

Albus's eyes twinkled, "A man I meant many years ago, he called himself Hohenheim. Hohenheim of Light."


	3. Kapital Zwei: Der Zauberstabmacher

A/N: I've received a few reviews that have warned me about a 'mary-sue alert' and I really think I should address this or risk losing a few readers. I do not plan on giving this character (the woman in the prologue) very much 'airtime' in the story at all, I do to not care for OC 's myself unless they play minor roles to simply move the story forward and that is all I intend for her to be. So, rest assured, my readers!

The room was vast and magnificent, the walls reaching towards the heavens in a splendid display of importance and imposing vigor. Four elongated tables filled up most of the space, but even they looked impressive and daunting, while one singular table, engraved with importance, over saw the rest.

It was at this table that Edward and Alphonse had found themselves sitting, their positions towards the very end of the left side attributing to the fact of being the most junior of the staff. Along with them sat several other professors, most of whom had only been introduced the week prior to the unusual pair, who still couldn't figure what to make of the new arrivals to the teaching staff. Of course, 'introduced' might not have been the most appropriate word to describe the meeting of the two German adolescents.

McGonagall, of course, had been one of the first to have the pleasure of meeting the misters Elric a month before term was due to start when she had overheard a noisy and dangerous sounding scuffle in Dumbledore's office while she had been on her way to speak to him. Naturally, she had expected the worst and rushed into the crowded room with wand raised, a stunning spell nearly spilling from her lips before she stared bewildered at the scene in front of her.

Dumbledore's study was in horrid disarray, everything that had once lined the neatly organized shelves placed sporadically throughout the room now lay in a disconcerting mess of broken glass and metal on the ground. The cause of the mess, McGonagall soon found, was a young blond-haired man of about twenty standing in the middle of the chaos surrounded by another boy that looked remarkably like the first though younger, and to her surprise Ollivander, the wand maker. The blond was holding what looked to be a rather long wand, waving it about and marveling at the destruction it caused. On closer inspection, she saw that other boy was clutching a box containing what seemed to be a newly acquired Ollivander wand.

She watched appalled as older blond jerked the wand again and knocked down one of the last standing bookshelves with a bang. She was about to intervene and restrain the troublemaker herself when she heard a purposeful cough come from her right where she saw an obviously entertained Albus Dumbledore looking at her. He winked at her before he turned his attention back to the hell raising blond, Ollivander and the teenager now trying to wrestle the wand from the boys hands.

"Now, now, that's quite enough young Elric. If you continue, I will find myself in want of new chambers and I must tell you it's very hard to find one with as good a view as I have now." Dumbledore took the offending wand out of the boy's now limp hand. The now identified Elric laughed sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Oh, sorry about that. I just didn't know how much fun it would be." His speech held a light, but distinct, German accent. He laughed again and apologized again to Ollivander who looked extremely frazzled at the situation. Never again would he do a favor for Albus if he could help it.

McGonagall scoffed in disapproval, her extensive years as a teacher kicking in. If this boy happened to be a new student, she'd be damned if she'd let this sort of behavior be allowed in her classroom. Though, he did look a little bit too old to be in school at all, let alone new.

The other three occupants finally noticed the new arrival at the noise and turned to examine her. Ollivander's face lighted up in relief and the other two looked at her in a mixture of curiosity and distrust, their unusual golden eyes staring at her intently. As much as she hated to admit it, the elder brother's (for that's what they must have been, they looked too much alike not to be related) eyes were extremely unnerving.

"Ah, I was wondering when you'd notice we had a visitor, Edward. " Dumbledore chuckled, placed a hand on the small of McGonagall's back, and guided her forward until she stood before the slightly shorter pair.

"This is Professor Minerva McGonagall, teacher of transfiguration here at Hogwarts. " McGonagall nodded her head in a polite but forced greeting.

"Minerva, this is the Elric brothers, Alphonse and Edward." They bowed in turn when their names were spoken. "They will be the new Alchemy teachers."

McGonagall's eyes widened a fraction in disbelieve before she turned back to Dumbledore. "You can't be serious, Albus. They're so young! Besides, surely you could teach it with your extensive knowledge on the subject?"

Dumbledore chuckled as he Edward began a rant under his breath that suspiciously sounded like 'old people…bastards…don't think I can do anything just because I'm young…' McGonagall was sure she even heard something about a muggle vehicle, a mustang, was it?

She watched as Alphonse laid a gentle hand on Edwards shoulder to calm him and whispered something into his ear causing Ed grumble but calm down, his arms folded grumpily across his chest like a pouting child.

"It's true I'm very well versed in alchemy, but really only in the theory of it. And, I've gotten so old, I don't believe I'd be able to keep up in the physical demands of the skill." He replied humbly before he turned back to the Edward sulking figure.

"I do believe we should continue the search for your wand, Mister Elric." Edward's eyes lit up and turned to a frighten Ollivander before Dumbledore continued, "Oh, I don't think we'll be needing anymore of mister Ollivander's wands. I think I have just the wand for you since none of these seem to be working out." He looked at the destruction around him once more and chuckled as he made his way to his desk.

He withdrew a small wand box from a locked drawer covered in weird circles and markings and handed it over to Edward with a knowing smile. Edward took the box in shock, tracing the designs with the fingertips of his right hand before he opened the box and withdrew a rather plain looking wand them seemed to warm and glow within his grasp.

"I was right. This wand was giving to me by an old friend some years ago. I don't know what it's in but they did tell me that it was forged using alchemy. Not a very common practice, is it Ollivander?" Ollivander nodded absent-mindedly, already packing up his extra wands and reaching for a portkey in the shape of a broken mug and was gone within an instant.

"He didn't even say goodbye. Why'd you have to scare him away, nii-san?" Alphonse pouted as both Dumbledore and Edward laughed at the wand maker's hasty retreat.

"Well, it is getting quite late. I think it's time for you two to go back to your rooms and get some sleep."Edward was already walking towards the door, the wand box tucked safely under his arm, his brother following closely behind him.

"I doubt we'll get any sleep, we gotta learn how to use these things. See ya, Dumbledore." He flippantly raised a hand in goodbye as he walked out the door, his brother stopping to bow in respect to the two professors and saying a quick 'nice to meet you' to McGonagall before running to catch up to his brother who had already made it down the hall.

McGonagall turned to Dumbledore in confusion, "Albus, how can they teach Alchemy if they can't even use a wand?"

Dumbledore's eyes began to twinkle, "Ah, it's seems I have very much to explain." He guided her to the only chair not knocked over where he began to tell her his second hand account of the Other Side.

Presently, the Elric's eyes were directed towards the impressive wooden doors at the end of the long chamber waiting for the first glimpse of their soon to be new disciples. It seemed like they had been waiting for hours, in actuality only for a few minutes, when Edward abruptly slammed his prosthetic fist, covered still in trademark white gloves, onto the wooden table causing the unused silverware and plates to rattle and jump on the surface. He growled in impatience and began tapping his fingers on the table, much to the annoyance of the other professors who looked down at the young man in disapproval.

Alphonse half-smiled in apology to the others before he turned back to his brother. "Nii-san, it's not that much longer. Besides, we got here a little early anyway."

Edward ignored his brother for a few moments before he stilled and turned to face him. "You're right, I'm sorry, Al. It's just that I hate waiting, you know that."

Just as the words left his mouth, the heavy wooden doors opened releasing a wave of loud wave of voices into the dining hall.


End file.
